Daniel Boone Regional Library

For Valentines Day, two of our libraries put together blind date with a book displays, allowing readers to check out and take home a “mystery” book. We asked those readers to let us know how the date went. Disaster? Love at first sight? Here are the comments from a couple of our readers, dishing the juicy details of their dates. (Did you go on a blind date with a book? It’s not too late to rate your date!)

Your blind date book: “Dragonswood” by Janet Lee Care
So, how was it? Incredible
What was your first impression? This could be interesting.
Rating: five hearts
Comments: I found my blind date at the Ashland library. An incredible book, it was a fun piece of fantasy fiction with a nod to historical fiction. With excellent writing, great characters and fun adventure, this book is a warm cup of cocoa on a wintry night (with extra marshmallows)!

Your blind date book: “Freedom” by Jonathan Franzen
So, how was it? Incredible
What was your first impression? This could be interesting.
Rating: four hearts
Comments: I loved the book display and appreciate you going to so much trouble. It was really fun to get a book I would never have known to pick up. I wanted to comment further about my “date.” At one point, I thought “This guy is really long winded. Does he have to go on and on and on like he does to get the character study made effectively?” If I was really on a date, I’d be running for cover! However, by the end, I was very impressed with the psychological study interwoven with the current tough times we live in. Thanks!!

Your blind date book: “Black Water Rising” by Attica Locke
So, how was it? Better than I expected.
What was your first impression? This could be interesting.
Rating: three hearts
Comments: I was pleasantly surprised by the book. It’s something I probably wouldn’t have found on my own. I would like to see a display like this remain as a permanent fixture at the library.

March 14: “Deep Green” 7:00 p.m. at Tate Hall Auditorium. (via)
March 15: “Tchoupitoulas”starts at Ragtag. (via)
March 21: “God in the Box” 7:00 p.m. at Ragtag. (via)

Wii U Launch Party
Wednesday, April 3 › 6-8 p.m.
Columbia Public Library

Test drive the library’s new Wii U game console. Become a ghost hunter in “Luigi’s Ghost Mansion,” defeat evil aliens in your own “Metroid” spaceship, or team up with your friends to conquer Bowser in the new “Super Mario Bros.” We’ll also have snacks and a selection of the library’s newest teen fiction, music and DVDs for you to check out. Don’t have a library card? We’ll have library card applications on hand for your parent or guardian to sign. Ages 12 and older. Registration begins Tuesday, March 19. Call (573) 443-3161 to sign up!

Grey Gardens is a 1975 documentary film by Albert and David Maysles that was a successful hit. The documentary, filmed in the Maysles brothers “direct cinema” style, introduced the public to a quirky mother and daughter pair both named Edith Beale. The peek into the world of “Little Edie” and “Big Eadie” has fascinated a generation, inspiring several different works based in the world of Grey Gardens.

“The Beales of Grey Gardens”

Released in 2006, this film is composed entirely of left over footage not used in the original documentary. It’s a sequel of sorts, giving more insight into the way the Beale’s lived their life. It was released by the Criterion Collection, who also re-released the original documentary in 2001.

“Grey Gardens — The Musical”

The film was adapted into a musical that premiered in New York in 2006. The musical follows the mother-daughter pair from being high society aristocrats to their isolated home life depicted in the original documentary. DBRL has the original Broadway cast recording on CD.

“HBO’s Grey Gardens”

This is a fictional film based off of the documentary that premiered on HBO in 2009. The film fills in the back stories of both women as played by Drew Barrymore (“Little Edie”) and Jessica Lange (“Big Edie”). The film won several Primetime Emmy and Golden Globe awards.

We use the word kin pretty loosely. Personally, I come from a large, blended family and have a network of very close friends, all of whom I consider family or kin. But what is kinship? In today’s world of reproductive technology, shifting ideas about marriage and evolving gender roles, kinship is a slippery term with a fascinating cultural history explored by a number of fields, from anthropology and evolutionary biology to women’s studies and law. March 15-17, the 2013 MU Life Sciences & Society Symposium “Claiming Kin“ will examine the evolution of kin groups and these changing notions of kinship. Visit the symposium’s website to see the full schedule, affiliated events, and to register for all or portions of this free event. Here are just a few of the highlights.

It’s me or the in-laws!: The Rocky Relationship between Couples and Kin
Friday, March 15, 7 pm, Jesse Auditorium
Enjoy this keynote address from Stephanie Coontz (Evergreen State College), author of the award-winning  book “Marriage, a History: How Love Conquered Marriage.” Coontz will trace changes in marriage from an institution that supported loyalty to parents to one that competes with it.

Kinship Mitigates Violent Conflict
Saturday, March 16, 9 am, Jesse Auditorium
Martin Daly (University of Missouri) discusses how theories of social evolution are relevant to modern human behavior, particularly violence within families.

It’s All Relative
March 2-31, Perlow-Stevens Art Gallery, Columbia, MO
This art exhibit, held in conjunction with this year’s MU Life Sciences & Society Symposium, explores the evolution of kin groups and evolving notions of kinship.

For memoirs, cultural histories and other works about families and social relationships, see our “Exploring Kinship” catalog list.

We’ve officially moved into the third round of our single elimination teen book tournament. So far, 24 books have been struck from the list to determine the Elite 8. Did Maggie Stiefvater make the cut with her book, “Shiver,” or did Kristin Cashore’s book, ”Graceling,” win? Who survived the last round: “The Book Thief” by Markus Zusak or “The Fault in Our Stars” by John Green?

March Madness Teen Book Tournament: Elite 8

1. “Mockingjay” by Suzanne Collins
2. “The Giver” by Lois Lowry
3. “Maze Runner” by James Dashner
4. “The Book Thief” by Markus Zusak
5. “Divergent” by Veronica Roth
6. “Inheritance” by Christopher Paolini
7. “Clockwork Prince” by Cassandra Clare
8. “Graceling” by Kristin Cashore

How the March Madness Teen Book Tournament Works:

Through a series of votes, we are narrowing the library’s list of the 32 most popular teen books to one grand champion. By supporting your favorite book, you’ll also be entered to win prizes like a gift card to Barnes & Noble, or a free autographed copy of “Legend” by Marie Lu! Prize winners will be announced on April 3 when we announce our book tournament champion.

• Round 1: Voting complete for the Sweet 16.
• Round 2: Voting complete for the Elite 8.
• Round 3: VOTE NOW through March 18 for the Final 4.
• Round 4: Vote March 19-25 for the final two contending titles.
• Round 5: Vote March 26-April 1 for the book tournament champion.
• April 3: The champion is announced!

Don’t forget to vote for your favorite four titles by Monday, March 18 at 5 p.m. You may vote online at teens.dbrl.org or pick up a paper ballot at one of our three branch locations. Limit one ballot per person, per round.  The Final Four will be announced next Tuesday, March 19.

We recently added “The gleaners and I” to the DBRL collection. The film by director Agnes Varda was an award winner from 2000 and currently has a rating of 92% from critics at Rotten Tomatoes. Here’s a synopsis from our catalog:

Varda’s most recent effort– the first filmed with a digital video camera– focuses on gleaners, those who gather the spoils left after a harvest, as well as those who mine the trash. Some completely exist on the leavings; others turn them into art, exercise their ethics, or simply have fun. The director likens gleaning to her own profession-that of collecting images, stories, fragments of sound, light, and color.

Check out the film trailer or the official film site for more info.

This January Defense Secretary Leon Panetta announced the lifting of the military’s official ban on women in combat, which will allow women to serve in more job categories in ground combat units. Many say this step is a long overdue acknowledgement of on-the-ground realities of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, where combat can be seen anywhere and at any time and is certainly not gender specific. It is also seen as a way to open up more command positions to women, where battlefield experience is critical to being promoted and effectively leading the men and women serving under them.

Even as women have taken on more active roles in combat zones, a woman serving in Iraq or Afghanistan is more likely to be raped by a fellow service member than to be killed in the line of fire. This astonishing fact is the starting point of “The Invisible War” (Docurama Films, 2012), a searing, deeply affecting, Oscar-nominated documentary directed by Kirby Dick. It focuses on the epidemic-level problem of sexual assault within the military. The stories of several female, and yes, male, survivors provide a humanizing glimpse into the problem that has been the subject of various scandals and discussed within the halls of Congress numerous times with apparently little effect upon on-the-ground realities for our servicewomen and men.

On Tuesday March 12, at 7 pm, the Columbia Public Library will be hosting a screening and discussion of “The Invisible War.” The viewing is co-sponsored by the Association of American University Women in honor of Women’s History Month.

For those wishing to understand how such events could happen so frequently, with seemingly so few consequences, the book “Honor Betrayed: Sexual Abuse in America’s Military” (2007) by Dr. Mic Hunter should be required reading. Dr. Hunter clearly outlines why and how sexual abuse in the military happens. He describes in detail current military culture and the code of hypermasculinity that is so prevalent. He states that the viewpoints inherent to the military way of thinking include a different view of pain than that of the civilian world, and that there is a high value placed on control, power and competition. Add polarized gender roles and an underlying endorsement of patriarchy to the mix, and he argues that you have a recipe for an environment rife with sexual harassment and abuse.

For broader and deeper accounts of the effects of war-time deployment upon women, “The Girls Come Marching Home: Stories of Women Warriors Returning from the War in Iraq” (2009) by Kirsten Holmstedt and “When Janey Comes Marching Home: Portraits of Women Combat Veterans” (2010) by Laura Browder are both books that tell the stories of a number of women who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“When Janey Comes Marching Home” is a beautiful coffee-table-worthy book with pictures of women soldiers and first-person accounts of how facets of military life such as deployment, motherhood, life in a war zone and returning home have affected these women. Their stories are unembellished, involving and powerful.

“The Girls Come Marching Home” focuses primarily on the combat zone experience of several women veterans and their struggles and experiences in returning home and trying to adjust to normal life once more. What happens in a war zone definitely does not stay in the war zone. Many veterans have long-lasting, difficult struggles in adjusting to civilian life after combat zone deployments.

As part of National Poetry Month in April, we invite Callaway County teens to submit their original poems with a chance to win an award and have their work displayed at the Callaway County Public Library, Central Bank and at teens.dbrl.org. Download an entry form or pick one up at the Callaway County Public Library. Entries due April 6. An awards ceremony will be held at 6 p.m. on Thursday, April 25 at the library. Co-sponsored by the Auxvasse Creative Arts Program.

I keep my watch set one minute ahead of the clocks at work, and I keep my alarm clock set four minutes ahead of my watch. Go ahead and laugh, but it prevents me from being late. It’s funny, the way we play tricks on our own minds to influence our own behaviors. Collectively, we as a society decide to start our day an hour earlier each spring, and then switch back to an hour later in the fall. But we can’t seem to manage it without changing the clocks to fool ourselves into thinking we’re waking up at the same time we always have.

With Daylight Saving Time beginning this weekend (remember to spring forward an hour Sunday morning), it seems like an opportune moment to ponder time and what it means to us. See some of the titles below to explore this topic from a variety of perspectives.

“A Brief History of Time” by Stephen Hawking is one of the best-known science books of our age. Hawking discusses nothing less than all of space and time – black holes, quarks, questions of whether time moves only in one direction – in language understandable to those of us lacking advanced physics degrees.

“Doctor Who” the BBC science fiction television series, features the adventures of the Doctor, a universe-traveling, eon-hopping Time Lord from the planet Gallifrey.

“The Complete Price Guide to Watches” helps us place a monetary value on the time-pieces we wear or carry. It also provides fascinating details about the history of watches and watch-making.

“Manage Your Time to Reduce Your Stress” addresses the most pressing issue many of us have with time: how to make the best use of it.

See our catalog list for more titles.

If, after checking out these resources, time still seems to be getting the better of you, remember what Douglas Adams had to say on the topic: “Time is an illusion. Lunchtime doubly so.”

Marcus Yallow, the tech-savvy protagonist of Cory Doctorow’s “Little Brother,” is back for more conspiracy-fueled action and intrigue in “Homeland“. Marcus, unemployed and broke, is given an encrypted USB stick by a former rival and told to make its contents public if anything should happen to her.  After witnessing her apparent kidnapping, he begins exploring the files on the stick and finds over 800,000 documents detailing all kinds of questionable, and sometimes illegal, actions taken by agents of the U.S. government. This presents a dilemma for Marcus, as releasing the documents could lose him his newly acquired job, and put him and his friends in danger. Things only get worse when someone else begins leaking the files and he is visited by a pair of goons who demand he destroys the information.

“Homeland” is a pretty engrossing read. It includes a good mixture of suspense and action while also asking some poignant questions about the relationship between a government and its citizens. What should the public be told and what should be kept secret? How far should a government go to maintain order? Doctorow can get caught up in describing cool pieces of technology, such as 3D printers and unmanned aerial vehicles, so if you like gadgets and techno-babble you will love these parts. If it’s not really your thing, this book is still worth it, you just need to get through these sections or skip them.

I highly recommend reading ”Homeland” and “Little Brother.” It  isn’t necessary to read “Little Brother” before “Homeland,” but it is helpful. Most of the characters first appeared in “Little Brother” and some of the events from that book are referenced in “Homeland.”

March 11:  “The House that I Live in” 5:00 p.m. & 7:00 p.m. Forum 8. (via)
March 11: “Ingredients” 6:00 p.m. at the MU Student Center, free. (via)
March 11: “Miss Representation” 6:00 pm at the Gaines/Oldham Black Culture Center, free. (via)
March 12: “The Invisible War” 7:00 p.m. at Columbia Public Library, free. (via)
March 13: “Who Took the Bomp? Le Tigre on Tour” 6:00 p.m. at  Dulany Hall, free. (via)
March 13: “The Imposter” 8:00 p.m. at  Wrench Auditorium, free. (via)
March 14: “The Bro Code” 6:30 p.m. at the MU Student Center, free. (via)

Tuesday, March 12 › 7-8:30 p.m.
Columbia Public Library, Friends Room

Join us for a special showing of ”The Invisible War” (93 min.) at Columbia Public Library. The film is the latest from acclaimed director Kirby Dick who made a recent appearance at the local Based on a True Story conference. This film is sponsored by the local branch of the Association of American University Women and the Columbia Public Library in honor of Women’s History Month. The film will be followed by a discussion moderated by members of the Association of American University Women. Refreshments at 6:30 p.m. Here’s a synopsis from our catalog:

A groundbreaking investigative documentary about the epidemic of rape within the U.S. military. Follows the stories of several idealistic young servicewomen who were raped and then betrayed by their own officers when they courageously came forward to report.

Check out the film trailer or the official film site for more info. While this film is not part of the monthly Center Aisle Cinema series, we’d still encourage you to attend.

We recently added “A Family Undertaking” to the DBRL collection. We showed the film last year as part of the Center Aisle Cinema series at the library, and it also appeared in 2004 on the PBS series POV. Here’s a synopsis from our blog post:

The documentary “A Family Undertaking” (60 min.) explores the growing home funeral movement by following several families in their most intimate moments as they reclaim the end of life, forgoing a typical mortuary funeral to care for their loved ones at home. Through their stories we see that “hands-on” care for the dead by family members, including children, can aid in grieving, bring a sense of fulfillment, and help loved ones to grasp the reality of a death. Their home funerals are remarkable documents of death made intimate, meaningful, and even joyful.

You can watch the trailer or visit the POV site for more info.

The theme for this year’s Adult Summer Reading program is “Groundbreaking Reads,” and we are looking for titles to fill out our book list. So, what books do you find “groundbreaking”? They could be books that have had a major impact on you personally, important works of literary achievement or things you just think everyone should read. We’re leaving the definition of groundbreaking up to you. Share your list of books in the comments section and stay tuned for more information about “Groundbreaking Reads.”

After an exciting two months of voting, DBRLTeen is proud to announce the Sweet 16 in our March Madness Teen Book Tournament. However, if you are just joining in the fun, here’s a little background to get you caught up.

Through a series of votes, we are narrowing the library’s list of the 32 most popular teen books to one grand champion. By supporting your favorite book, you’ll also be entered to win prizes like a gift card to Barnes & Noble, or a free autographed copy of “Legend” by Marie Lu!

How the March Madness Teen Book Tournament Works:

• Round 1: Voting complete.
• Round 2: VOTE NOW through March 11 for the Elite 8.
• Round 3: Vote March 12-18 for the Final 4.
• Round 4: Vote March 19-25 for the final two contending titles.
• Round 5: Vote March 26-April 1 for the book tournament champion.
• April 3: The champion is announced!

This year’s Sweet 16 leans heavily toward dystopian novels, but there is a good mix of fantasy, romance, and contemporary fiction. Don’t forget to vote for your favorite eight titles  by Monday, March 11 at 5 p.m. The winners from this round of competition will be announced next Tuesday, March 12.

March Madness Teen Book Tournament: Sweet 16

1. “Mockingjay” by Suzanne Collins
2. “The Giver” by Lois Lowry
3. “Maze Runner” by James Dashner
4. “The Book Thief” by Markus Zusak
5. “Divergent” by Veronica Roth
6. “Inheritance” by Christopher Paolini
7. “Shiver” by Maggie Stiefvater
8. “Breaking Dawn” by Stephenie Meyer
9. “Clockwork Prince” by Cassandra Clare
10. “Graceling” by Kristin Cashore
11. “Hate List” by Jennifer Brown
12. “Before I Fall” by Lauren Oliver
13. “The Fault in Our Stars” by John Green
14. “Heist Society” by Ally Carter
15. “The Grimm Legacy” by Polly Shulman
16. “Dark Life” by Kat Falls

We recently added “How to Survive A Plague” to the DBRL collection. This film played at the True/False Film Festival in 2012, and currently has a rating of 100% from critics at Rotten Tomatoes. Here’s a synopsis from our catalog:

The story of the brave young men and women who successfully reversed the tide of an epidemic, demanded the attention of a fearful nation, and stopped AIDS from becoming a death sentence. This improbable group of activists bucked oppression and infiltrated government agencies and the pharmaceutical industry, helping to identify promising new medication and treatments and move them through trials and into drugstores in record time.

Check out the film trailer or the official film site for more info. Director David France was in Columbia this last weekend moderating a panel for the True False Film Fest.

March is Women’s History Month, and this year we are honoring the generations of female scientists, mathematicians, and engineers whose passion for the advancement of human knowledge changed the way we understand the natural world. Whatever your gifts, the stories of these intrepid women are certain to make you appreciate living in a world that allows you to develop them in ways your great-grandmother might never have thought possible.

In my nerdier moments, I’ve often dreamed of hobnobbing with the great minds of the twentieth century, instigating feuds and ruffling feathers (“Pardon me, Lord Russell, but there appears to be a slight problem with your Principles of Mathematics…”). So I was excited to discover “I Died for Beauty: Dorothy Wrinch and the Cultures of Science,” the story of a woman who, in many ways, lived just that dream, studying at Cambridge and Oxford and making significant contributions to fields from philosophy to protein structure. Marjorie Senechal paints a compelling portrait of this fascinating and influential woman whose “life was her work, [and] her work her life.”

We’ve all heard of Marie Curie, the pioneering physicist whose research on radioactivity remains relevant to this day. What you may not have known was that Curie had two daughters, Eve and Irene, who followed in their mother’s iconoclastic footsteps. (Eve became a foreign correspondent and humanitarian, and Irene played an important role in the discovery of nuclear fission.) In “Marie Curie and Her Daughters,” Shelley Emling tells the story of this extraordinary family, especially Curie’s struggles against sexism and xenophobia and the aftereffects of her long-term exposure to radiation. Inspiring and moving, this book is sure to secure Curie’s place in your pantheon of personal heroes.

In “Sisters in Science: Conversations with Black Women Scientists about Race, Gender, and Their Passion for Science,” Diann Jordan, a scientist herself, interviews 18 prominent black women scientists to learn about their experiences. Some of the women include Shirley Ann Jackson, the first black woman to earn a doctorate in theoretical physics and the first black woman to head the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission; Lynda M. Jordan, who rose from a housing project outside of Boston to become a professor of chemistry; and Jennie R. Patrick, one of the first students to integrate her Alabama high school, who was the first black woman to earn a doctorate in chemical engineering in the United States.

Reading their stories, and those of the Curie family and Dorothy Wrinch, I was struck by how important it is to use our gifts and abilities in order to become who we were meant to be. Through hard work, the women in these books found their place in the scientific community and in the world. We would be much the worse if not for their courage and dedication to the pursuit of knowledge.

Read more about Women’s History Month and local events celebrating the achievements of women in science by visiting the library’s subject guide.

March brings the promise of spring. With this season approaching, you can start thinking about spring cleaning, which can be more than what you do for your house.  You can also offer your body a spring cleaning with a detoxification regime. Take advantage of this month’s second floor table display near the reference desk at the Columbia Public Library for information on this topic. We’ll be featuring books on nutrition, including detoxification diets, herbal and home remedies. As always, be sure to consult with your doctor if you are considering using any of these alternative modalities.

There are many things you can do yourself at home to bolster your health, treat illness and prevent disease. Good health is the result of many factors, but an essential contributing one is diet. You can think about “food as medicine,” that what you eat is very important in creating and maintaining vibrant well-being.  Since each of us has different dietary needs and preferences, there is no “one size fits all diet” for everyone. Fortunately, there is no shortage of options to investigate if you want to use food as a first line of defense in preventing illness. Paul Pitchford’s book “Healing with Whole Foods“ looks particularly interesting. His approach synthesizes Asian healing traditions with modern nutrition to offer treatment for disease.

An herbal or home remedy can be a useful first response when treating common maladies. I’ve said it before but I’ll repeat it here; my all-time favorite “cure” collected along my since-teen-hood herbal medicine path is garlic and onion broth* to help clear colds and sinus infections. My mother spent some time researching her line of the family tree and let me know that Dr. A. Q. Simmons – my great, great, great, great, great grandfather of Georgia – developed “Dr. A. Q. Simmons Vegetable Liver Medicine” back in 1840.  This medicine was later patented by Simmon’s grandson, Miles Thedford, and sold as Thedford’s Black Draught. The main active herbal ingredient in this dark, syrupy elixir was senna, a powerful laxative, and so says my mother, “it will set you free.”

So it seems my interest in herbs as medicine goes back even farther; I’m channeling Dr. Simmons – he lives through me in the 21st century! Wishing you vibrant health and speedy recoveries from whatever may ail you.

*The Garlic & Onion Broth Cure (for colds and sinus infections):

Gently simmer in a covered pot, one half of a thickly sliced onion with 3 cloves of garlic in a quart of water for 30 minutes. Drink all of it over the course of the day. Repeat daily for as long as you have symptoms.

Help us get ready for Summer Reading by designing an original bookmark based on the teen theme, “Beneath the Surface.” Winners’ artwork from each library branch will appear on bookmarks to be distributed late spring through summer. Please design two-dimensional artwork, using crayons, markers or any other illustration tool or medium. Photography is also acceptable, as long as it is your own! Download an entry form or pick one up at your nearest library branch. Ages 12-18.  Entry deadline is Saturday, March 30.